Eco-conscious songsmith Novo Amor announces Leeds date

Spine-tingling Welsh songwriter Novo Amor is bringing his own indie rock meets folk music style to Leeds later this year.

As part of an autumn tour that will take the multi instrumentalist across Europe he will make an appearance at Leeds’ Brudenell Social Club on Friday, October 19.

Announcing his latest tour with his stunning eco-conscious, Blue Planet-esque new video for ‘Birthplace’, the ascending artist will air tracks from his debut album of the same name at the show.

A meditative and intelligent collection of songs forged in the nocturnal hours, ‘Birthplace’ was written and recorded by the multi-instrumentalist at his home studio.

Novo Amor, aka Ali Lacey, has unveiled a remarkable and poignant video for the title track from his anticipated debut album ‘Birthplace’, set for release on October 19 via AllPoints.

The video highlights the monolithic problem of plastic in our oceans and was shot in Komodo and Bali, Indonesia, with production duo Sil and Jorik who previously worked with Novo Amor and his collaborator Ed Tullett on the emotional and cinematic video for their track ‘Terraform’.

Sil and Jorik shared their thoughts on the concept behind the film: “We want to make films about stories that matter, especially when those in disadvantage can’t speak for themselves.

“The pollution of our oceans is one of the most important stories of our time. They are under attack by a rapidly growing tumour of plastic waste for which we are responsible. We’ve been exploring ways to make a video that touches on this topic for a while, and when we heard Ali’s music the specific idea came to us almost in a flash.”

World-renowned freediver Michael Board stars as the character of humanity in the video. He performed over 250 freedives during the shoot which involved the crew spending 35 hours underwater.

Board appears alongside a 13-metre bamboo humpbacked whale sculpture, covered in plastic that was collected by local children in return for schoolbooks as part of an environmental initiative started by a primary school.

Sil and Jorik continue: “On the last day of filming the whale, we disassembled it and took it out of the water. We removed all the plastic and nets and transported the segments back to the mountain village where it was created. Here, the builders will add extra, woven bamboo to replace the plastic. Soon, it will find its final resting place on a waterfall near the village where it will become a permanent tourist attraction with a water fountain shooting from its mouth.”

Ali Lacey added: “The presence of plastic waste littering our oceans is not a new issue, but it’s an issue that has been worsening for years and is something that we can and should be addressing.

“The problem is not only a threat to marine life, but to the entire food chain, our whole ecosystem. When something impacts wildlife in such a profound way, we can expect it to impact upon us. The problems are manifold, the repercussions shocking, but there are ways in which we can raise awareness of such an urgent issue, and counter it.”